Electric-arc lamp.



PATENTED NOV. 21, 1905.

W. R. RIDINGS.

ELECTRIC ARC LAMP.

APPLICATION FILED Mum, 1904.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

No. 805,322. PATENTED NOV. 21, 1905. W. R. RIDINGS.

ELECTRIC ARC LAMP APPLIGATION FILED MAR. 1, 1904.

5 SHEETSSHBET 2.

Wm zoo w awww tom No- 805,322. PATENTED NOV. 21, 1905. W. R. RIDINGS.

ELECTRIC ARC LAMP.

APPLIUATION FILED MAR. 1, 1904.

6 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

PATENTED NOV. 21, 1905.

' W. R. RIDINGS.

ELECTRIC ARC LAMP.

APPLICATION TILED MARJ, 190 i.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

51m i a: I

PATENTED NOV. 21, 1905.

W. R. RIDINGS. ELECTRIC ARC LAMP.

APPLICATION FILED MARJ, 1904.

5 SHEETSSHEET 5.

m h/Q, 3M @ttozmm GA- Mammy UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM REGINALD RIDINGS, OF STRETFORD, ENGLAND, ASSIGNOR TO WESTINGHOUSE ELECTRIC & MANUFACTURING COMPANY, A CORPO- RATION OF PENNSYLVANIA.

ELECTRIC-ARC LAMP.

To all whom it may concern;-

Be it known that I, WILLIAM REGINALD RIDINGS, a subject of the King of Great Britain, and a resident of Stretford, county of Lancaster, England, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Arc-Lamps, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to electric-arc lamps.

One object of this invention is to provide means whereby a plurality of carbons or electrodes deposited in a lamp can be automatically fed one after the other into the carbonholders by gravity, so as to maintain a continuous supply of carbons in the holders until the number of carbons deposited has been exhausted. For this purpose, according to this invention, each carbon-holder of a lamp is provided with a magazine into which the respective carbons can be conveniently dropped, say, from the top of the lamp. The magazines are arranged so as to be capable of rotation about an axis parallel with that of the respective carbon-holders and are provided with a convenient number of annularly-disposed longitudinal chambers or longitudinal series of supports capable of freely supporting each carbon practically parallel to the axis of the magazine, so that when a partial rotation is periodically given to the magazine the chambers in succession come into line with the holders. Means are provided whereby the aforesaid periodical partial rotation is automatically given to the magazine so soon as the top end of the carbon in use has been lowered by the feeding-gear below the level of the bottom of the magazine and is completed when the carbon in use has been further lowered to or below the level of the top of the carbonholder. thus bringing a fresh carbon first into contact with and finally into line with the remainder of the carbon in the holder. As the carbon in the holder is further lowered the aforesaid fresh carbon follows by gravity until it comes within the control of the feedinggear. This action is repeated until the supply in the magazine is exhausted.

One convenient manner of obtaining the above-mentioned periodical partial rotation of the magazine is to utilize the motion of the feeding or striking gears or that of the solenoid-core which actuates them to revolve a slotted disk or retract a pawl, trigger, pivoted lever, or the like against the resistance Specification of Letters Patent. Application filed March 1, 1904. Serial No. 196,036.

Patented Nov. 21, 1905.

of a spring, so as to bring pressure to bear in the direction of rotation of the magazine against a projecting end of each of the carbons in succession or against a series of projections on the magazine itself. The pressure thus placed on the magazine directly or indirectly tends to retain the carbon in use in contact with the carbon-holder, which provides a counter resistance to the above-mentioned spring. This counter resistance is removed as soon as the feed removes the upper end of the carbon in use from the magazine, allowing the magazine to be partially rotated by the spring bringing the next succeeding carbon first into contact with and then into line with the carbon in the holder. The abovementioned slotted disk, pawl, trigger, pivoted lever, or the like is thereupon again retracted by the motion of the actuating-gear above mentioned with a like result. It is necessary to provide the gear connecting the actuating mechanism with the aforesaid magazine-rotating device with a lost motion, so as not to interfere with the normal working of the feed or striking gear.

1n the accompanying drawings the invention is illustrated by way of example only as applied to lamps of that kind in which the electrodes are inclined with reference to each other and are provided with a magnet for controlling the shape and position of the arc.

Figures 1 and 2 are side elevations at right angles to each other of a lamp constructed in accordance with this invention, the outer casing being removed. Fig. 3 is a sectional plan of the lamp shown in Figs. 1 and 2 drawn to an enlarged scale. Fig. 4 is a detail view, in side elevation and partly in section, showing the connection between the magazines and the carbon-holders; and Fig. 5 is a sectional plan of the same, showing a magazine-rotating device in its normal position. Fig. 6 is a similar view showing the same device in its operative position. Fig. 7 is a view, mainly diagrammatic, showing the arrangement of the electrical circuits of the lamp.

Referring to Figs. 1 to 6, each carbon-holder 1 of the lamp is provided with a magazine 2, intowhich the respective carbons are dropped, say from the top 3 of the lamp, which is provided for that purpose with suitable openings covered by caps 4 L, having bayonet-joints 5 5 or other suitable devices for retaining them in position. The magazines 2 2 are so arranged as to be capable of rotating about an axis parallel with that of the respective carbon-holders. This axis may conveniently consist of a rod or tube 6, supported at its lower end in a nut 7 on the carbon-holder 1, (see Fig. 4,) the upper end being suitably supported in the top 3 of the lamp. The magazines 2 are of suitable length to support the carbons practically parallel to the.axes of the magazines and are provided with a convenient number, say five, as shown, of annularly-disposed chambers 8. The chambers 8 may be formed, for example, by a number of tubes 9, connected together in any suitable manner, provided with one or more central bearings 10 for the rod 6, the lower end of which bearing or bearings may also serve as a step-bearing to carry the weight of the magazine. The radius of the ring of chambers 8 is equal or approximately equal to the distance between the center of the rod 6 and the center of the corresponding carbonmagazine-rotating device 13, hereinafter to be described. The remainder of the carbons are supported vertically by a supplementary table 12. In order to insure when the magazine is filled that one of the carbons inserted shall be in line with the carbon-holder, the openings in the top of the lamp are each provided with a fixed guide-plate (not shown) having a number of holes corresponding to the magazine-chambers and so adjusted that one of the said holes corresponds with the carbon-holder. Aperiodieal partial rotation of the magazines 2 is automatically and conveniently obtained by means of the rotating devices 13, each of which consists of a pawl or trigger pivoted on the rod 6 and preferably operating in the same direction, as shown by the arrows in Fig. 6. One end 14 of the'said pawls is made sufficiently long to bear against the carbons-for example, carbon 20 and sufficiently broad to support in its normal position the point of the carbon for example, carbon 21next in rotation to that carbon against which it happens to bear, as shown in Fig. 5. The ends 14 of the aforesaid pawls in their retracted positions (see Fig. 6) are retained in contact with the carbons by adjustable springs 16, (see Figs. 2 and 3,) operating on preferably adjustable connecting-rods 17, pivoted at 18 to the pawls. The pressure thus placed on the carbon 21, and thereby on the magazine, tends to retain the carbon 20, which is partly within the magazine and partly within the holder, in

contact with the latter, which provides a counter resistance to the influence of the corresponding spring 16. The influence oi' the spring is adjusted so as to cause the pawl to revolve about its center through an arc corresponding to the pitch of the carbon-magazine chambers 8 so soon as the aforesaid counter resistance is removed by the feed mechanism withdrawing from the magazine the top end of the carbon 20 in the holder 1. By this motion the next succeeding carbon 21 is brought first into contact with the top end of the carbon 20 in use and then is brought into line therewith on the carbon 20 being further lowered to or below the level of the top of the carbon-holder 1. Preferably the next succeeding carbon is not brought into line with that in use until the top end of the latter is well below the top of the carbon-holder. By this arrangement all possibility of the spring 16, say by defective adjustment, causing the next succeeding carbon to revolve past the mouth of the carbon-holder is avoided, as the point of the carbon striking the mouth of the holder would constitute an automatic stop. For this purpose the mouths of the carbon-holders are beveled on the advance side at 63, (see Figs. 3 and 6,) so as to allow the point of the next succeeding carbon 21 to fall below the general level of the mouth of the carbon-holder before arriving in alinement therewith. The normal position of the pawls 13 is shown in Fig. 5, and the said pawls are retracted against the resistance of the s 'irings 16 into the position shown in Fig. 6 by gearing connected to the spindle 23 of the striker 24. This gearing consists of a lever 22, keyed on the striker-spindle 23, which when operated by the solenoids 30 causes the said lever to be moved so as to strike the end 14 of the pawl (shown on the left hand of Figs. 3, 4, and 6) or a downwardly-projeeting pin 25 secured thereto, and it also serves to operate by means of a pivoted slotted link 26 the end 15 oi the pawl. (Shown on the right hand of the right hand of the same figures.) The connection between the pawl end 15 and the slotted link 26 consists of a pin 27, carrying a roller 28, (indicated by broken lines in Figs. 3, 5, and 6,) which takes into the slot of the link 26. The slot in the link 26 provides a lost motion, whereby the striker-spindle 23 is allowed free play at all times. The stroke of the lever 22 and the length of the slot in the link 26 are, however, so arranged as to momentarily relieve the carbons 20 in the holders of the pressure of the springs 16 after the feedclutches 29 (see Fig. 2) have been withdrawn, so that the carbons are free to feed by gravity.

The striker-spindle 23 is operated in conjunction with the feed-clutches 29 in a wellknown manner by a solenoid and core.

It will be understood that when the pawl 13 is retracted from the position shown in Fig. 5 to that shown in Fig. 6 the carbon 21 will be free to fall upon the flange 11 of the carbon-holder 1, as the motion of the magazine cannot then be reversed, owing to the carbon being partly in the holder 1 and partly in the magazine-chamber 8.

As shown, two solenoids are preferably employed, their respective cores 31 being secured to a cross-bar 32, connected by an adjustable rod 33 to a pivot 34 next the outer end of one arm 35 of a bell-crank lever carried by a horizontal pivot 36, secured in a snug cast on one of the carbon-holders 1. The other arm 37 of the aforesaid bell-crank is connected by a horizontal pivot 38 to one end of a link 39, the other end of which is connected by a vertical pivot 40 to a crank 41, secured on the striker-spindle 23.

The aforesaid pivot 38 or the boss at that end of the link 39 is arranged to project and to come into contact with the carbon-holder 1, so as to form a stop for the striking-gear and also for the magazine-rotating device. The feed-clutches 29 are formed at the end of one arm 42 of two bell-crank levers horizontally pivoted at 43 in snugs cast on the carbon-holder 1, the other ends 44 of the said bell-crank levers being provided with horizontal pivots 45, which are connected to horizontal pivots 60, provided on each side of the crank-arm 35 at a point intermediate between the pivot 36 and the pivot 34, by connectinglinks 46, provided at their upper ends with adjustingscrews 47, which afford a certain amount of lost motion to permit the point of the striker to arrive in position before the clutches 29 are released.

Pressure is put upon the feeding-clutches 29 by springs 48, attached at their upper ends to pins 49, secured to the carbon-holder 1, and at their lower ends to an extension-bar 50, secured to the crank-arm 44.

It is obvious that the pawl 13 may be replaced by a disk having a slot sufficiently large to clear two carbons-for instance, 20 and 21, Fig. 6in,which case the supplemen tary table 12 or a portion thereof would not be required and, further, that the spring-pawl may operate the magazine directly by contact for example, with the tubes 9 or a series of projections on the magazines-in which case the carbons would normally rest on the flange 11 of the carbon-holder 1.

Referring now to Fig. 7, in which the elechen the current is switched on, sufficient current traverses the coil of the magnet 54 to cause its armature 55 to be attracted, and thereby to complete the circuit of the series coils 30, which thus become energized and attract the cores 31, by which means the striker 24 is brought into its active position in which it projects under and connects the points of the electrodes. The carbon-clutches 29 are operated by the same means, but momentarily later, so as to release the carbons after the point of the striker has covered the position of the points of the carbons, and the pawls 13 are retracted from the position shown in Fig. 5 to that shown in Fig. 6, where they are momentarily held to enable the carbons to feed by gravity. The carbons having descended into contact with the striker-current through the electromagnet 54 will be reduced, whereby it becomes deenergized sufliciently to allow the armature 55 to break the circuit of the series coil 30, whereby the pawls l3 and feed-clutches 29 will be released, the striker withdrawn, and the arc struck. Owing to the relative positions of the pin 27 in the end 15 of the pawl and the slotted link 26 both the striking and feeding mechanism are free to act without materially altering the position of the pawls 13 except so far as to momentarily re lieve thecarbons 20 from the pressure of the springs 16 when required to feed. hen the carbon in the holder 1 has become consumed so far that the top thereof has passed out of the magazine, the spring 16 will be free to act, and the pawls 13, revolving the magazine, will when the carbon in the holder 1 has further passed below the level of the table 11 allow a fresh carbon to be introduced by gravity into the mouth of the carbon-holder 1. (See Fig. Finally, when the series coils 30 are again energized the pawls will be again retracted into the position shown in Fig. 6.

It will be observed from the description given above that for the greater portion of the time during which the lamp is in operation the series coils and substitute resistance are cut out of circuit. The expenditure of energy in passing current through said series coils and resistance during this part of the time is thereby avoided.

1 claim as my invention 1. In an electric-arc lamp, a holder for containing an electrode in operative position, and a magazine comprising a number of independent compartments or receptacles arranged around a common center and containing electrodes, a spring adapted to cause an automatic, periodical and partial rotation of the magazine when the operating-electrode has been consumed to a predetermined extent, a

magnet adapted to be energized by the effect of an abnormal resistance in the formation of the arc and a core for the said magnet, the

IIC

said core being so related to the said spring as to compress the latter When the said magnet is energized.

2. An electric-arc lamp having electrodes 5 feeding by gravity upon the release of a clutch operated by electromagnetic means, the coils for operating the feeding mechanism being cut out by a shunt-Wound electromagnet when the arc is struck or When the arc does not ex- 10 ceed the normal length, the shunt-Wound magnet having an armature, by means of which the circuit of the electrode-feeding coils is both opened and closed.

Signed at London, in the county of Middlesex, England, this 27th day of January, A. I). 5 1904.

WILLIAllI REGINALD ltl DlNG'S. lVitnesses:

A. A. BERGIN, TALTER J. SKERTEN. 

